GUELPH, ONT.—The shelves are still being stocked, but the first three Target stores in Canada will open their doors to the public on Tuesday morning in Guelph, Fergus and Milton.

“We want to open up these three stores to the public and really have the public help us, teach us how to be better,” said Tony Fisher, president of Target Canada, announcing the openings at a press conference at the Guelph store on Monday.

“We expect that we’re going to learn a lot.”

As Fisher led reporters on a tour through the 120,000-square-foot renovated former Zellers store, staff were still busy stocking shelves with merchandise.

By the end of 2013, Target expects to have 124 stores in ten provinces, employing 27,000 people.

The three Target pilot stores that will open March 5 at 8 a.m. are at 175 Stone Rd. W. in Guelph, Milton Mall Shopping Centre in Milton and Gates of Fergus in Fergus, Ont.

Although hours may fluctuate as the testing process continues, the pilot stores are expected to be open 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday to Saturday and 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Sunday.

The pilot stores each have a Starbucks and an in-store pharmacy, as will a majority of Targets in Canada.

At 150-200 employees per store, Target will be carrying a lot of staff on the payroll, but Fisher said he is confident the locations selected by Target after it bought Zellers leaseholds from HBC for $1.825 billion in 2011 will be so profitable it will make up for any added labour costs.

Fisher would not say what percentage of Target employees have been given full-time positions with benefits, but he said benefits are available to some employees being paid hourly. He also declined to say how many former Zellers employees have been hired by Target.

About 27,000 Zellers employees lost their jobs as a result of the real estate transaction between HBC and Target.

While some Canadian retailers have been pruning and cutting back in some categories to remain more competitive in others — Sears for example, has reduced electronics in some stores to focus on TVs and home theatre — Target is entering the market with a promise to be the one-stop-shopping store for Canadians, selling everything from engine oil to pet food to iPhones and the chic, cheap home furnishings and clothing it has become famous for.

Fisher is also promising fast, friendly service to shoppers, including quick check-out.

Rather than promising to match U.S. Target prices, Fisher said Target will sell at low prices, match local advertised prices and shoppers with a Target card will get a five per cent discount on everything they buy.

The Guelph store was organized around a large oval racetrack design, with large red overhead signs for easy navigation. Customers will be able to easily find the department they want simply by looking up.

The entrance to the store leads straight into seasonal items immediately to the left and right — in March that’s plastic Easter baskets for .99 cents, and bikini tops and bottoms for $17.99 and $14.99.

The decor is red-and-white and, like Walmart, the target market is mom, with aisles and sections organized around her needs, including a colour-coded toys section: blue for boys, pink for girls, yellow for children under the age of six.

In an addition to the automotive section, the store also includes a well-stocked grocery section that included perishables like milk, prepackaged baked goods including Dufflet pastries, and time-savers including pre-mixed salads.

“Food is a critical part of our assortment. We know that guests come for food to Target more often than just about every other category in the store. We want to make sure we have guests basic food needs as well as some things that will surprise and delight them in food,” said Fisher.

Fisher said the merchandise throughout the store will be adjusted frequently and seasonally.

The merchandise includes partnerships with Canadian designers, including a limited edition ROOTS line featuring front-zip hoodies for teens for $34.99.

Fisher admitted that when he first came to Canada a year ago, he pronounced it “ruts.”

Target has been carefully orchestrating a grassroots public relations campaign in the months leading up to the opening, handing out free Christmas trees in Sudbury during the holiday season, bringing The Tenors to Dundas Square for a free performance, along with a fleet of 30 Target-branded cars to provide complimentary car service to pedestrians.

It seems to have worked. Fisher said brand awareness of Target in Canada has jumped to 92 per cent from 70 per cent since 2011, and to 70 per cent from 50 per cent in Quebec.

The chain has 825,000 Canadian Facebook fans and hasn’t even opened a store, Fisher said.

The television ad campaign for Target characterizes the American retail giant as a friendly new neighbour. It adapts the theme song from Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, a popular children’s television show originated in the 1960s.

Not everyone is buying it.

Guelph-area resident and author Jim Trautman said he’ll be supporting Giant Tiger — a Canadian owned retailer — over the Target store, which his daughter calls the “GT Boutique.” He liked Zellers.

“They can’t hide from the fact that they could have added something to the deal for the Zellers employees or been serious about hiring Zellers employees. It seems like in the 21st century, the big corporations always have an excuse,” said Trautman, author of Pan American Clippers: The Golden Age of Flying Boats.

“I’m not going to knock myself out going to a Target.”

Fisher’s appointment to the position of president of Target Canada was announced in January, 2011, which put him in charge of building the team, establishing Canadian headquarters and leading the day-to-day operations.

He joined Target in 1999 and has held a variety of leadership positions at the company, including VP of merchandise operations in 2010, where he was credited with leading the corporation’s efforts to leverage technology to enhance shopping for customers.

Target U.S. stores had their worst holiday sales period in four years, it was announced last week. Net profit in the quarter that ended Feb. 2 fell to $961 million (U.S.) from $981 (U.S.) a year earlier.

The cost of setting up shop in Canada — Target’s first international venture — has also increased, to $1.5-billion (U.S.), cutting about 45 cents from earnings per share in 2013, it was reported.

The projected cost of renovating and expanding the former Zellers locations was estimated at over $1-billion when the deal was announced in January 2011.

Target launched its Canadian venture when it paid $1.825-billion to HBC to purchase the leasehold interests in up to 220 sites operated by Zellers Inc.

Retailers currently operating in Canada that stand to lose if Target captures market share include Walmart, Sears Canada, The Bay and Canadian Tire.

More on thestar.com

We value respectful and thoughtful discussion. Readers are encouraged to flag comments that fail to meet the standards outlined in our
Community Code of Conduct.
For further information, including our legal guidelines, please see our full website
Terms and Conditions.